Phineas and Ferb Wiki:Newsletter submissions/The Numbers Game: 2011 Year In Review-inator
2011 came in showing lots of promise for big things, but did it live up to the lofty expectations? With the pages having flown off of another calendar, it's time to take a look back at the past year in the world of Phineas and Ferb with the 3rd Annual The Numbers Game Year In Review-inator. There can only be one place to start any discussion of the year, and that's with Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension. The series' first Disney Channel Original Movie premiered on August 5 to a whopping 7.642 million viewers, becoming the most watched program across all kid-targeted cable channels for the year: '1. ''Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension, August 5, 7.642 million ' 2. ''iCarly "iOMG", April 9, 7.355 million 3. iCarly/Victorious "iParty with Victorious", June 11, 7.316 million 4. 2011 Kids' Choice Awards, April 2, 7.287 million 5. The Suite Life on Deck "Twister, Part 3", January 16, 7.109 million As is to be expected with ratings of that magnitude, Across the 2nd Dimension's success cut across age brackets, ranking on the year as TV's No. 1 scripted program in Kids 2-11 and 6-11 and Disney Channel's No. 1 rated broadcast among Tweens 9-14, and even drawing TV's highest rating on the evening among Adults 18-49. With a week's worth recorded viewing factored in, the movie premiere drew over 10 million viewers, making it cable television's No. 1 rated movie of the year. As a whole, TV ratings were strongest during the summer months as the excitement around the movie brought the community to a fever pitch. "My Fair Goalie" paced 2011's collection of new episodes as 4.65 million viewers saw it on September 9, a series high for a regular episode. "Bad Hair Day / Meatloaf Surprise" took second with 4.37 million viewers on June 24, drawing the series' highest numbers of the year in the target 6-11 age group; in fact, it was the No. 2 animated program of the year behind only Across the 2nd Dimension. Checking into the third spot with 4.29 million viewers was "Phineas and Ferb Interrupted / A Real Boy" from July 15. In all, 2011 premieres account for 5 of the top 8 most watched new episodes in series history. In addition to the show itself, several pieces of merchandise found success in 2011 as well. The show's third soundtrack CD, "Across the 1st and 2nd Dimensions" peaked at a series-best No. 57 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Despite its August release, it also reached the 2011 yearly Kids Albums chart at No. 24, where it was joined by the 2009 "Phineas and Ferb" at No. 18. Not to be left out, last year's "Holiday Favorites" soundtrack made its first appearance in the Billboard 200, peaking at No. 126 a few weeks ago. In addition, the Across the 2nd Dimension video game is estimated to have sold about 650,000 copies worldwide across its three platforms since its August release, bringing total sales of Phineas and Ferb video games to an estimated 2.5 million units. In 2012, Phineas and Ferb is set to become the longest-running Disney Channel Original Series of all time. The year looks to be headlined by the "World Without a Platypus" event in the summer, and should also feature several other highly-anticipated episodes including the long-awaited "Meapless in Seattle". The fun begins January 13 with the Time Shift Weekend - four new episodes in four nights - and I, for one, am ready for the start of another great year for Phineas and Ferb. The_Numbers_Game:_2011_Year_In_Review-inato